Zu Ti was a great man of Jin Dynasty. He was ________ for his hard work and great achievements. But when he was a child, he was a naughty (顽皮的) boy who showed little ________ in reading. As he grew up, Zu Ti ________ he didn’t have enough knowledge. And he deeply felt that he could not serve his country well. So he made up ________ mind to study hard.

Zu Ti had a ________ friend named Liu Kun. They had a deep friendship. So they stayed together every day. They even slept on one bed every night and ________ at the same time every morning. One day, when they were ________, Zu Ti heard the rooster crowing (打鸣). An ________ came to him. He woke up Liu Kun and said, “How about getting up to play swords (剑)?” ________ he was still sleepy, Liu Kun agreed with Zu Ti gladly. From then on, they got up and played swords ________ the rooster began crowing. They kept their words day after day. They never gave up no matter how ________ in winter or hot in summer. Besides, they began to study history ________ and put all their energy into reading books. ________ , they learned a great deal of knowledge and made much progress. A few years later, ________ of them grew up with talents and wisdom. At last, their ________ came true and they made great contributions to their country.

This is the Chinese idiom story To Rise with the Rooster.

There was an old oak tree in the garden. Holly’s father wanted to cut it down and build a new office there. Holly felt sad and didn’t agree. She moved into the old tree house, which was her favourite place in the world. One day, it rained all night. Lightning lit up the sky and thunder rumbled. The tree house was moving. A branch (树枝) broke. Holly and her dog Eco fell down from the tree. Her parents ran towards her and took her into the room. Luckily, Holly was all right.

The next day a tree surgeon (外科医生) named Harry examined the oak tree. He did some tests, then he talked to Holly and her father.

“This is a lovely tree,” he said. “I can see why it’s so important to you, Holly. Unfortunately, it’s very old, and it has a disease. It really isn’t safe. I’m afraid it has to come down.”

Holly nodded. Her father put his arm around her.

“Can you cut it down?” he asked.

“Yes, of course,” said Harry.

“And after that… can you plant a new tree?”

“A new tree?” asked Holly, surprised. “Where?”

“In the same place, of course,” her father replied.

So Harry cut down the old oak tree and planted a new one in its place. Holly helped him fill the hole with earth, and Eco jumped in and out of it while they were working. Later the whole family stood around the new tree.

“It’s small, isn’t it?” said Holly’s sister Sophie.

“It’s small now,” said Holly, “but it’s going to grow. It’s going to grow as big as my old tree.”

Then she turned to her father.

“Dad, where are you going to build your new office?”

“Over there,” said her father, pointing.

“On the lawn?” asked Holly. Her parents were crazy about their stupid lawn!

“It’s OK,” her mother said. “The tree’s more important. In fact, I want you to have a party in the garden for your new tree. And I want you to invite all your friends.”

Holly and Sophie smiled. It was going to be a great summer after all.

Did you know that vocabulary (词汇) is more important than grammar? If you have good vocabulary, you can communicate successfully, even if the grammar is not completely perfect.

However, one common problem is learning new words and then forgetting them. So when you want to use a new word in a conversation, you can’t remember it at that moment. Does this often happen to you? The reason for this difficulty is that most students try to learn vocabulary by studying lists and dictionaries and remembering the words. But it may not work if you don’t have a very good memory.

The best way to learn vocabulary and remember the words successfully, is to learn new words and use them at once. You can do this with a very simple exercise. Every time you learn a new word, for example, from an English lesson or an article, write it down in your vocabulary notebook. Writing is more active than just reading a definition (释义). You should write the word, the definition in English or translation, one example sentence from the article or dictionary and one example sentence that you create.

Imagine you just learn the word “generous”, write in your vocabulary notebook: generous (adjective), definition—giving or willing to give freely. Example one, from the article: Thanks for paying for my dinner, you’re very generous. Example two, my example: My brother is generous because he volunteers at the animal shelter on weekends. It’s best if your example sentences are true to your life, because this creates a personal connection with the new word. The next day, read your vocabulary notebook again and try to add one more example sentence using the new word. It’s helpful for you to remember it. These two simple steps—writing the word and using it at once—help you remember and use new words.

Do you have a vocabulary notebook? If not, start now.

The Horsetail Fall (瀑布) is one of Yosemite National Park’s most amazing views. Around the second week of February, the setting sun hits the Horsetail Fall at just the right angle (角度) to light the upper parts of the waterfall. And when conditions are right, the Horsetail Fall becomes orange and red at sunset. It is like red-hot lava (熔岩) pouring down from the top of the El Capitan. So, it got the name “firefall”.

The firefall is a perfect match of the weather, the fall, the time and the watching place. It usually appears on dry, warm and cloudless days. There must be enough flowing water to make a firefall too. So there must be enough snow on the mountain top, and it turns into water on warm afternoons.

The sun goes to the best place before the fall in late February. And the best time to watch the fall is 5 to 15 minutes before the sunset. Only at this time can visitors see the firefall. The El Capitan Picnic Area is the best place to watch, because it is close to the fall and is perfect to set up cameras and tents.

Every year in February, thousands of photographers come to watch the firefall. Although the view may appear just minutes before sunset, many of them have to come hours earlier to get a right place to set their cameras in time. “I’m just saying that the Yosemite Firefall is something you don’t want to miss during the winter,” says Kate Moore, a traveller and the lead content creator for ParkedInParadise.com.

Gifts are a way for people to show love.
46． The gift can be anything, your favourite CD, a book, clothes, delicious food and so on. Getting a gift can make you feel the love. A handmade gift is the best way to show your love. And on the day of making a gift, you can share that love with someone you care about.

Make a Gift Day is on December 3.
47． The day is coming. If you don’t know what to buy, why not make a gift on this day?

48． There was time, not all that long ago, when a handmade gift was the only kind of gift you could give. In the past, gift-givers would spend time making gifts for their friends. Whether it’s a simple handmade wallet, a new skirt, or a baby bed for a soon-to-be baby, everything is handmade with love.

You may wonder how to celebrate Make a Gift Day. It is an easy one! Make handmade gifts on this day! Try your hand at making a gift, no matter what it is.
49． DIY some gifts with your friends.

Don’t have a DIY skill? Start learning from today. You can start making handmade gifts for your family and friends in the New Year. You all have the ability to make gifts for people you care about.
50． And write some sentences on it to express your love.

There are so many kinds of gifts you can make and you need to think and create for yourself. People who get your gifts will know how much you love them.

Erhu is one of the most important Chinese instruments. It has a history of o
61． 1,000 years. It is said that Erhu did not get its name u
62． the late Qing Dynasty. It has been improved gradually since it appeared. It is also c
63． the Chinese violin because its tone is as soft and bright as the violin’s. There are many w
64． pieces of music played by Erhu, such as The Moon Reflected on the Er-quan Spring. You can go and e
65． the charm of them. I hope you’ll love them.

“双减”之后，如何让我们的暑假生活过得快乐而有意义？请你根据以下图片及文字提示，以“Happy Summer Vacation”为题给校报英语专栏写一篇短文，为同学们提供一些建议并说明理由。

Happy Summer Vacation

The summer vacation is coming. With more free time, how can we have a happy and meaningful vacation? Here is my advice.___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________